STILL NOWHERE FOR FIVE-TITLES FINDON

FINDON'S immovable cast-iron portcullis protecting the Sussex Invitation League title from all comers for five successive seasons will not bring open up Sussex League cricket to Long Furlong in the foreseeable future.

The best SIL team there has ever been is split inside on the idea of stepping up into county league cricket, the club management would be interested in taking the club there on certain terms, but the Sussex League neither have a vacancy nor the terms of entry to accommodate them.

Findon chairman Iain Swallwell said on Saturday night: "If the Sussex League second division was East and West instead of across the county, Findon would be very interested in moving up. I think the Sussex League know our views and how we feel.

"We want to play at the highest level we can but we don't want to lose the social thing. At the end of the day cricket is a recreation.

"The other thing is we'd want to keep is the links between our first team and our juniors. If we had a team of imported players in order to play Sussex League cricket they wouldn't know who the juniors were.

"We've got first-team players who coach the juniors '” that's important."

Sussex League chairman Terry Burstow explained the Sussex League position: "The Association of Sussex Cricket Clubs proposed an east-west second division but the Sussex League clubs did not want that. Applying that idea even to the 2nd XIs was rejected by the clubs on an 18-2 vote.

"I can see a lot in the idea but the Sussex League clubs are happy as things are.

"Say Littlehampton missed promotion this season. Instead of playing the likes of Hastings and Horsham next season they'd be playing in a division half-full of village clubs, so you can understand why.

"Any club can apply to join but the Sussex League are not going to change their rules to suit other people. If, say, three SL teams disbanded and we couldn't get replacements, then obviously things would have to be looked at but we're some way off from that."

Findon would, of course, sacrifice their place in the npower National Village Cup by quitting the SIL. In the three years since re-entering the competition, they have reached the Sussex Final, then twice running the National semi-final.